The Association of Judges has reacted to PM Hristijan Mickoski’s comments on the judiciary while he was presenting his stand on the Criminal Court’s suspended sentence against oncologist Meri Pesevska.
As it noted on Tuesday, it has already published facts on salaries, that is, that the pay of the majority of basic court judges in the country, with the 2023 increase of 78%, is up to 86,000 denars, whereas salaries of court servants are exceptionally low and below the minimum wage in the country.
The Association of Public Prosecutors reacted, too, saying the new law provided for the total budget for the institution to amount to 0.5% of the state budget, not of the GDP. Those funds are intended not only for salaries of prosecutors, but also for the entire costs of public prosecutors in the country.
“Compared to all countries in the region, but also beyond, and also in terms of stake from a percentage standpoint and total amount of funds, this country is at the bottom when it comes to budget allocations for this purpose”, it stressed.
VMRO-DPMNE, however, in a press-release, stated if the low salaries were a reason for judges and prosecutors to try unethically and “make pacts with bandits, crimes, corrupt politicians, and mobsters”, its suggestion was for them to leave right away.
The same day, nonetheless, SDSM leader Venko Filipce, on the other hand, too, criticised Micoski’s comments, stating that the VMRO-DPMNE-led government headed by Mickoski was directly responsible for the situation in the judiciary and non-implementation of required reforms.
VMRO-DPMNE responded to his comments, too, emphasising that the Zaevs and Ahmetis clans were directly to blame because they were the ones running the judicial-prosecutorial system.